3 people file to run for state Senate seat in south Arkansas special election

Two Republicans and one Democrat have filed to run in the Senate District 1 special election to replace Republican Ben Gilmore, who resigned to join the Arkansas attorney general’s office.

Sanders calls special election to fill south Arkansas Senate seat vacated by Gilmore

Thursday was the deadline to file for the seat, which encompasses Ashley, Bradley, Chicot and Cleveland counties, as well as parts of Drew, Grant, Jefferson and Lincoln counties. Independents have until Aug. 7 to submit their petitions to run for the seat.

Missy Wardlaw of Hermitage, a veterans healthcare coordinator, filed to run on the Republican ballot, as did Harrell Wilson, the president of the Cleveland County School Board.

Eudora Mayor Tomeka Butler was the only Democrat who filed to run.

Wardlaw is also the wife of outgoing state Rep. Jeff Wardlaw, also a Republican. She ran to succeed him in House District 94, but lost in the primary earlier this year to John Kyle Day.

The special primary election will take place on Sept. 15, with the special general election coinciding with the midterm elections in November. The winner of the contest will serve until January 2029, when Gilmore’s term was set to end.

Gilmore’s departure leaves Senate Republicans with a 28-6 supermajority. During his 2024 reelection bid against Libertarian nominee Asher Williams, Gilmore won more than 77% of the vote.